Design

Tuesday, 20 December 2016

Nothing like a foot of snow to get me in the Christmas spirit. Usually I have my tree up by the first week of December but I just couldn't do it this year. And then we had a snow storm, & I was ready...just like that.

So here's my little home tour...simplicity is my game! This year I've embraced black in my Christmas decor (actually all over my house)...including black wreaths! Although I'm not a green fan, I absolutely love the forest green & black combo. Enjoy the tour!

And here's the cutest little tree in the world! I loved this tree just on its own without any decor but decided to decorate it with white lights, burlap garland (Dollarama) & pompoms (Michaels) . Keeping with my kitchen & that modern farmhouse style...a little different from last year's decor.

Like I said, simplicity! I took some very small wreaths & wrapped them in black scarves (all from the Dollarama). I also used a lot of pinecones & placed them in urns & candle holders that I already had.

Just want to thank you all for following me & supporting me in this blogging journey. A couple of weeks ago a few Canadian bloggers got together for a parade of Christmas home tours. If you want to check it out it starts here.

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas with your family & loved ones!

Sunday, 11 December 2016

In an effort to make my Newmarket builder box home look a little more like New York , I decided it would be a good idea a few weeks before Christmas...what was I thinking?... to sponge paint my front hall.

I absolutely love brick walls...every time I'm out and see one I take a pic because I just love that industrial look...I thought about doing the faux brick wall panels, the peel and stick wallpaper, or using plaster and tape. However, if I decided I didn't like it or got tired of it in three months (which happens a lot around here), then I would wreck my walls and be stuck with it. So I decided to buy a sponge and bought one that was for the end of a mop, like this one, which co-incidentally happened to be the exact size of the brick on my house. Then I left the dark grey on the walls (Metropolis by Ben Moore) and used some paint left over from another project and just went for it.

So here's what I did:

1. dampen sponge slightly.

2. put a light coat of paint on the sponge with brush.

3. start in far lower corner and work up the first four or five rows.

4. place sponge on the area and move back and forth slightly (lightly wetting the sponge helps with moving it).

5. try to keep each brick above the other in alternate rows as you move up.

6. once you do a few rows moving up, then move horizontally across the wall keeping them straight as you go.

7. when all the bricks are on the wall, then put a little bit of paint on the sponge and dab it in between the bricks.

Bricks are very forgiving...they aren't perfect. Don't be afraid if you screw up. You can go back over it and make it darker. Just remember to keep your bricks straight. If the bricks start to become uneven, you can always lengthen or widen a brick...again, bricks are imperfect. I also did this over a few days, an hour or two at a time.

So now my challenge is finding the right mirror and lighting...I shopped my home for lighting and like this one (above) from Homesense, but I'm not sure about the mirror.... (I know, I'm missing a drawer pull.)

And then I decided to paint my doors a beautiful black called Vulcanite by Ralph Lauren. This is the colour I'm going to be using on my lower cabinets for the kitchen (I know it's been a very long time coming but they are finally being painted in January...patience, people). So it was an opportunity to test it and make sure I like it and I do, I really really do. ...I've wanted to do this for years too.

Oh, and we got the most ADORABLE Christmas tree ever...and to bypass the annual hours and hours of the Christmas tree falling over, I just stuck it in a basket...It might turn brown but it won't fall over!

Isn't she the cutest little tree? Axel has been circling it like a shark...which is why it's now up high and in a basket.